One year after 26/11, law and order at sixes and sevens

One year after the 26/11 terror attacks rocked Mumbai and the rest of the country, a public opinion survey here in the Capital reveals that 60 per cent of Delhiites are not happy with the Government’s handling of the law and order situation in the country.

Conducted by Shyam Vyas MARC Private Limited, the survey shows 36 per cent of the respondents uncertain and only 4 per cent approving of the government efforts on the law and order front.

Based on a representative sample of Delhiites, the random survey conducted on the eve of the first anniversary of 26/11 was aimed at gauging public mood, perceptions and expectations a year after the unprecedented terror attacks.

According to the survey findings, 78 per cent of the respondents did not approve of the manner in which the Manmohan Singh Government dealt with Pakistan in the aftermath of the Mumbai attacks: “Most believe that the Government has made many flip-flops and had not sent out clear signals. Only 10 per cent actually approved of the way the Government has handled Pakistan.”

Sixty per cent of the respondents held the Pakistan Government squarely responsible for the Mumbai attacks while 40 per cent blamed private terror outfits operating from inside Pakistan.

There was a mixed response to the question about how the nation should handle Ajmal Kasab, the lone captured Mumbai terrorist now on trial in Mumbai. While 56 per cent of the respondents believe India should hang him right away, 44 per cent feel the trial should continue and Kasab should be sentenced by the Judge at the end of the trial.

An overwhelming 80 per cent of the respondents agreed that India should continue insisting that the India-named terror perpetrators and masterminds in Pakistan be extradited to India to stand trial here.

“Asked if the true heroes of 26/11 have been well remembered or if we as a nation have not done adequately enough for them, an overwhelming 78 per cent respondents stated that more needs to be done for the heroes of 26/11,” reveals the survey.

Seventy per cent believe that the nation needs to be more alert, more united and better prepared to meet any future terror threats and situations while 50 per cent believe that the country is more united today than it was a year ago.

“The response to the question whether we as a nation are today better prepared to meet the terror threat than we were a year ago was mixed: 40 per cent stated that we are better prepared, while another 40 per cent said we are not better prepared, and 20 per cent were uncertain.”

Asked what would be the greatest tribute to Mumbai’s martyrs, 80 per cent said the Government should formulate a clear “zero tolerance” policy towards terrorism backed by strict laws. Politicians were identified as the weakest link in India’s war on terror by a whopping 80 per cent of respondents.